A moment of clarity part two AKA The L word
by FOXY FOLLOWER
Summary: The sequel to A Moment of Clarity. The morning after the night before! Please review.


**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters, I just borrow them. Story and mistakes are mine.**

**A/N This is the much requested sequel to A moment of Clarity, you really need to read that first for this to make sense. Please review.**

**A Moment of Clarity - Part Two AKA: The L word**

Grissom was hiding in his office trying to do the impossible and make time stand still; failing miserably and finally resign to the fact that shift would start as usual in 10 minutes he run a hand through his unruly hair. The events of the previous day weighed heavy on his mind; not least the threat Catherine had thrown his way as she left the bar. He had tried his best to sort out the, 'Sara Situation' but fate had been against him, sighing heavily he leaned back in his chair and tried to think of a way out of his imminent doom. After five minutes contemplation he was still at loss as to how he would survive the next eight hours, glancing at the clock for the tenth time in as many minutes he reluctantly got to his feet and shuffled from behind his desk.

Sara was feeling rough; she had literally crawled out of bed and hugged the walls in the shower as the hot spray cascaded onto her body in an attempt to breathe some life back into her. Now she remembered why she didn't go out very often, a few beers on the sofa once in a while had never resulted in her current state. Catching sight of herself in the bathroom mirror she narrowed her eyes to try and clear the blur from her vision, what stared back at her did nothing to improve her morale. Pale sullen complexion, puffy red rimmed eyes and a large bruise on the side of her cheek were she vaguely recalled rolling off the settee sometime during the night and making good contact with the coffee table, "fantastic." She said out loud.

Grissom made his way down the corridor towards the open door of the break room where his salvation was sitting in the form of Greg, Warrick and Nick, if he could just make it in without bumping into Cath, then at least he would have a chance. His sudden boost of confidence died the moment he came face to face with a very pissed off Catherine Willow's, jaw clenched and eyes looking slightly insane she began to close in on him. In a desperate bid to save his own skin, he spun around and began his retreat only to be met by the chocolate orbs of a certain brunette, whimpering like a defenceless animal about to be torn apart by a pair of lions Grissom frantically looked between the two women.

"Gil Grissom, I want a word with you." Catherine's voice oozed with venom, causing him to pray that Ecklie would round the corner and drag him into one of his shift long meetings about the 'state of the lab.'

Hearing the commotion in the corridor, three pairs of eyes stared out of the break room, they had heard the full sordid story told in candid form by the grumpy detective and they were strangely elated that they would be present for what promised to be the next thrilling instalment of the Grissom and Sara saga. Seeing the three men gleefully shift their chairs into pole position so as to not miss the showdown, Grissom cursed under his breath and vowed to put each and every one of them on decomp cases for the foreseeable future.

Grabbing his arm roughly Catherine dragged the panic stricken man back into his office, pausing only to give the brunette a distasteful look before continuing into the room, slamming the door with a loud thud that knocked his Billy Bass clean of the wall, only marginally missing the blond in the process.

"Didn't I make myself clear yesterday? Undeterred by the disruption around her she stood hands firmly on her hips and waited for his reply.

"I tried Cath, really I did but she fell asleep on me when I was in the middle of opening up to her. I don't think I can face her today, could you give out the assignments for me?" Turning to his desk, Grissom felt suddenly smug with himself that he had come up with such a great diversion to a tricky problem, Cath would feel like he was putting her in charge and he would get to hide in his office, it was a win - win situation.

Catherine Willows felt the anger surge in her veins and she was about to put pay to Grissom's, 'great idea' when she had one of her own, smiling sweetly she took the papers from his outstretched hand and opened the door to reveal three men on hands and knee's ears pinned to the now absent door. "Break room now you guys!" without breaking stride she continued down the corridor heels clicking a merry tune.

Thumbing through the slips of paper Catherine set her plan into action, one way or another she would get this hapless pair together. Stopping at the last sheet her face broke into a wide grin, _Oh this is good_, she thought to herself, _better than I hoped._

Watching the changing emotions play out on the older woman's face Sara wondered why she was so happy while she felt anything but. Dragging a stray piece of hair forward to conceal the now dark purple bruise on her cheekbone she managed a weak, "Hey" as the rest of the team, minus Grissom entered the room and sat down.

"Right Nick, Greg, you have a home invasion in Henderson and Warrick you are with me on a car jacking off the strip." Taking a deep breath to hold back the laugh that was threatening to escape, Catherine shouted down the hall, "Grissom." Seeing him poke his head through the open door she continued, "you have a body dump with lots of bugs," pausing for a heartbeat before adding, "your with Sara." Seeing the panic causing his usually healthy tanned complexion to pale to light beige she delivered her final blow, "it's a road trip to Jackpot, make sure you take a change of clothes!" Strike three! She mentally congratulated herself on her stealthiness before following the three younger men out the door leaving Grissom, mouth flapping like a fish and Sara, head on table mumbling incoherently.

They had only been on the road for five minutes but already the air in the claustrophobic vehicle was thick with tension. Clearing his throat Grissom ventured into the unknown, "So, what have you done to your face?" An honest question he thought, but the hard stare he got in response convinced him not to pursue the issue any further, four hours of silence ensued with only the repetitive hum of the A/C for company until they thankfully pulled up in front of the motel Catherine had made reservations at.

The young man behind the counter briefly dragged his eyes from the ball game he was engrossed in, "Yeah?"

Grissom raised a disapproving eyebrow at the specimen in front of him, "We have a couple of reservations in the name Grissom."

"Nope" Came the abrupt reply.

"Excuse me?" Grissom felt one of his migraines begin to take hold.

"The reservation is for one double room." That made him grip the counter for support as his heart began to beat at an alarming rate, hearing a sharp intake of breath from behind him Grissom cursed, _I'll kill her_. Catherine Willows was going to be a permanent fixture on his shit list for a very long time to come.

Struggling to open the door he finally gained access to the small room and stood back while Sara entered. By this time she was wishing she had brought a six pack in her case to help her get through the next few days. Casting her eyes around the room she briefly noted the double bed, maybe she could work this to her advantage, after his speech the previous day she knew he harboured feelings for her, maybe, just maybe this could be the turning point. She found Grissom staring absently at the double bed, sheer panic in his wide eyes.

After working the case for eight hours straight they returned to their enforced prison. Sara headed to the bathroom and started the taps running, returning to the main room to collect what she needed, she watched Grissom as he perused the case files, she noted how handsome he looked when deep in concentration, before retreating and closing the door.

Thing weren't going well, he had been preoccupied all day and now she was just a few feet away, sat in a bath with only a thin chalk wall between them. The images being conjured up by that notion set his pulse racing, as he tried in vain to concentrate on the case file her voice drifted through the closed door.

"And then you go and spoil it all by saying something stupid like I love you"

He had never heard Sara sing before but it wasn't her voice that was enticing him it was her choice of song, _was she trying to tell him something?_ Before he could ponder that thought further the door opened and she breezed into the room wrapped in just a towel.

He was so stunned by her unprompted appearance that he dropped the case file scattering the sheets across the floor, quickly he bent to collect them and in doing so brushed her leg with his arm as she passed. That did it, all available blood was sent to a certain organ in his body causing it to get a life of its own. Swallowing hard Grissom continued to scoop the papers up and successfully conceal his growing problem.

"You alright Griss?" Sara tried to keep her face straight while she eyed her reluctant room mate.

"What? Yeah, sure I'm fine." The words tumbles out in a jumble of disjointed syllables. All the while he was giving far too much attention to the fire regulations sign on the wall in a bid to avoid further reactions. At that moment the phone began to chirp and vibrate in unison on the bed. Realising he couldn't reach it from his current position in the easy chair he eyed the gadget with exasperation.

"Are you going to answer that? Sara arranged her damp tousled hair so that it fell in loose curls around her face. All the time keeping her eyes firmly on the man in front of her.

"Could you pass it over here?

Slowly she retrieved the still ringing phone and did her most seductive swagger, dropping it in his outstretched hand before retreating once again into the bathroom.

Expelling a sigh of relief Grissom eventually remembered the phone in his hand.

"Grissom"

"Oh hi Gil, hows things? Catherine's voice failed to hide her gleeful smile that he knew was spread across her smug face. If only she was here now he would cheerfully strangle her for setting him up like this.

"Cath, when I get back to Vegas I'm going to…" His voice trailed off as his frustration took hold. Once again the door to the bathroom swung open revealing what Grissom could only describe as a vision in front of him. Sara emerged wearing only a tight ribbed tank and the briefest pair of shorts he had ever seen.

"Oh my God" Grissom's voice was a full two octaves higher than his normal pitch, "Jesus Sara, will you put some clothes on!" The giggling coming from the cell reminded him Catherine was still on the other end, "I'll talk to you later." He barked into the receiver before he snapped the phone together silencing the hysterical laughter. He nearly tripped over his own feet as he scrambled into the bathroom and set the shower to extra cold. _This was going to be a very long night._

Shifting uncomfortably in the easy chair that he had commandeered as his temporary bed he cursed Catherine Willow's for the millionth time, not only had she engineered this whole situation but she had somehow managed to find the only motel room in the whole of the west coast that didn't have air conditioning. His clothes clung to him like a second skin as he cast his eyes over the lithe form splayed haphazardly on top of the bed in front of him. Every so often she would shift position or mutter incoherently, this only served to increase his interest, even in slumber she managed to captivate his heart. Her smallest mannerisms intrigued him; finally relenting he tossed the thin sheet to the floor and rounded the bed before gingerly lying down, relishing the firm comfort as his spine realigned itself. Turning gradually on his side to face her he marvelled at her beauty. He had always found her attractive but while asleep her features relaxed and she seemed almost angelic. Tentatively he reached out a hand and brushed an unruly strand of hair from her face. Subconsciously she rolled towards him causing him to hold his breath for fear that she would stir. Satisfied that she had slipped back into a deep sleep he released his breath, whispering a nearly inaudible, "I love you."

His heart nearly stopped dead in his chest when her eyes sprung open fixing him in an unwavering stare before a smile lit up her face, as she closed the gap between them with her hand coming to rest lightly on his face.

"Do you only ever proclaim your love to a woman when you think she is asleep? Before he could tell her that she was in fact the only woman he had ever uttered those works to, she placed a finger across his lips to silence him and added, "I love you too Gil Grissom."

END

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